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kidnappedbycartoons · 9 months

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Back on my Zutara tip again

You already know why I'm here. Zutara is on my mind. I know a lot of people talk about the Southern Raiders episode when it comes to them, and I get it. It's another one of their big moments. It's a pivotal point in their relationship. You cannot talk about them without talking about that episode, literally impossible. But, I want to focus on the little details after that episode. Because they are just as important to the ship as that episode is.

So, the next episode after is the Ember Island Players. Besides, what I find so funny about this episode is how, we are able to see how close Zuko and Katara have become, but at the same time we are seeing the distance between Katara and Aang. I laugh.

So, I'm trying to figure out why Zuko specifically wanted to sit next to Katara. No this might be small to some other people, but I see the interaction between Zuko and Aang about the whole seat thing, as a demonstration of the maturity difference between the two. At first, Aang tries to get Zuko to give up the seat ("I wanted to sit there"), but it's literally not a big deal. And Zuko tells him this ("Just sit next to me. What's the big deal?"). Like Aang, baby, you can handle not sitting next to Katara for a few hours. And then he sits down and he's sulking. Like...it's really not a big deal.

Besides that though, we are able to see just how comfortable they have become with each other. She's joking around with him, teasing him about the actor's portrayal of him. Katara even checks up on him after seeing the scene between him and Iroh. There's clearly no bad blood between either of them. And, I'm not going to comment on that stupid play, because we all know who the writers were targeting. And, I don't see anything wrong with the Zuko and Katara inching away from each other and being a bit uncomfortable with the actors romantic scene. Because, they just became friends, y'all. Let's give them time to chill. But you see, that's the beauty in this. We are seeing the two of them become more comfortable, more open, more friendly with each other as these episodes progress. There is such a clear development between them.

During Sozin's Comet, once again. Zuko and Katara have gotten closer, but Katara and Aang don't seem to be on the same page as much anymore. We see them arguing much more in the later half of book 3 than we ever did throughout the whole series. But funnily enough, while Zuko and Katara were on opposite sides for the majority of the series, they are closer than ever during the later half of book 3.

Anyway, I just love these episodes for these two, because we really see the trust between them. Like, it's in the little details. Katara is the one to invite Zuko into the group hug. Katara is the one that initiates teasing with Zuko, by bringing up the baby picture that she thought was him but it was actually Ozai. When Zuko tells Katara to let Aang go, she does. She listens to him. She trusts his advice. Katara is the one to ask him what to do after Aang dips out on everyone. You just know for a fact, that book two Katara would have never done any of this. That's what we call development. For some reason, after the Southern Raiders episode, there's this silent trust between the two that is just so amazing to watch. There was a bond built there. Really, the bond was built back in the catacombs, but then it got destroyed in the catacombs, but then it got rebuilt in the Southern Raiders episode. Love to see it.

We all know the scene where Katara reassures Zuko before he goes to talk to Iroh. But, like I said, it was give and take between these two. Zuko had Katara's back when she went to confront her mother's killer, she has his back when he's going to reunite with his uncle. We see the two of them have each other's backs, be each other's support. One person wasn't carrying all the emotional burden in this dynamic, both of them did. Also, I just love how the first person Zuko thought of to help him with Azula, was Katara. There was no hesitation at all. He knew what Azula was capable of, but he also knew what Katara was capable of too. He knew who to have by his side. And that's trust.

During the battle with Azula, not even, before that. Zuko could tell that Azula is not all the way there mentally, so he chooses to take her on by himself, instead of putting Katara at risk of being severely hurt. Zuko taking that lightning bolt for Katara was important. This has been said before, but it had to be her. It couldn't be anybody else on the team. It was her, she was the first one in the team that he connected with. She was the one that he had to work overtime to gain her trust. She was the one that felt the most betrayed by him after what happened in the catacombs. It could not be anybody else. It would not have had the same impact if it was anybody else. Literally, imagine somebody else on the team in Katara's position, would it really have hit the way that it needed to? No. Zuko literally risked his life to save her without even a second thought.

And after she healed him, the intimacy between them was something different. The softness in his voice as he thanks her, the tears in her eyes, the gentleness with which she held him. Do y'all see it? Something that's just very interesting with Zuko and Katara is the balance between them. Like, it's a clear cause and effect between them, if that makes sense?

Zuko apologizes to Katara and then she offers to heal his scar. Zuko betrays Katara's trust, she is rightfully upset with him, he works to earn her trust. Zuko has Katara's back as she goes to confront the source of her trauma, she has his back when he's preparing to go face Iroh. Zuko takes little lightning for my girl, Katara heals him. You see what I mean? Both of them are putting an effort in building this relationship. The bond between them is also an integral part of both of their stories. Now, I'm not saying that Avatar should have ended with the two of them getting together. I am on the side that says that the ending of the show should have been the team looking out at the sunset, not a make out session between a twelve and fourteen year old. But, what I am saying, is that the potential is there. The ingredients are there. There is something magical between these two. And if not just the fans, but the voice actors, and some of the writers could see it, I don't know what to tell you if you can't see it.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #zutara #atla katara #atla zuko

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lenathekiller · 7 months

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Unrequited pt.2

Buggy x reader

A/N: here's the second part in all it's messily written glory. Angst again but the ending is sweet (and funny in my opinion).

Enjoy!

Pt 1

You'd been traveling with the Straw hats for a while now, for a few months or maybe even half a year?? Honestly you had stopped keeping track of time or at least days, it was pointless to when it was hurting you more than it was helping. Starting out the journey counting the days since you had last seen your friends and the man you loved, but you quickly realized after a week or so that it was only serving to make your heart grow heavy with sorrow.

The new crew kept you on your toes far more than you had ever been before. Constantly being dragged along to explore the islands you docked at, getting dragged into fights you didn't want to be in, getting a target basically placed on your back by a warlord for simply being around Luffy. It was fun at times but you'd often find yourself exhausted and longing for the more relaxed life you had back with Buggy.

Sure the Buggy Pirates we're fearsome, known to destroy whole towns over night for fun, but you'd been placed on the part of the crew that would stay in the boat to not only guard it but also to prepare the circus tents to be set up for performances. You were a pirate, there was no denying that, but you'd always been a somewhat passive one who would do all the necessary background type jobs while the tougher guys of crew did all the dirty work.

It was always like that for you on Buggy's ship and even on the ship you'd sailed with before, but these straw hats really made you feel like you'd joined a pack of wolves operating as a pack, not the beehive with workers coming and going like you were use to. They were all nice, friendly, charming people sure, but they could never make you feel the same level of comfort that Cabaji, Mohji, and unfortunately Buggy had brought you.

The longer you stayed with these misfits the more you missed the freaks. You wanted to get away from the circus so you wouldn't have to feel that pain of unrequited love, but your leaving only served to bring you loneliness of feeling like you don't belong here.

Thankfully you were somewhat saved by Fire Fist Ace, he'd very briefly joined up with the straw hats and ultimately when he left he offered to take you with him. You had been grateful to him, able to see how you really didn't fit in with his brother or the rest of the group and so he'd asked you to come with him. Ace was open to helping you find somewhere you'd fit in better, which ultimately led you back to the ship your heart longed to be on again.

Buggy wasn't fairing any better than you had been to be honest. When he'd seen you riding out to sea aboard the Going Merry, he'd felt something in him break. He knew you said you would be leaving his ship back in LogueTown because you'd both known it would've been torture for you to stay any longer with things as they were, but deep deep down part of him was hoping, praying, wishing for you to be there when he got back. He had hoped you'd change your mind, not for his sake but for the sake of his 2 most faithful members.

Cabaji refused to do any unicycling for a month or so after, stating it hurt him to perform on it after he'd already gotten his mind so dead set on the idea of teaching you how to ride so he could perform with you. Mohji was not much better, really only spending his time with his lion Riche, often talking to the beast about how he misses the times you'd offer to brush out the lion's mane only for him to find the pair of you asleep.

The rest of the crew, even though never becoming as close to you as the main 2, all seemed to have imaginary rain clouds over them after you'd gone. The whole ship seemed to be quieter, less vibrant, and all around gloomier now that you weren't here to constantly liven the place up with jokes or general upkeep of things.

Buggy felt things the hardest though. Sure he'd inadvertently distanced himself from you a while prior to your leaving and had grown to barely talking to you, but he still missed your presence on board. He missed seeing you around the ship smiling at him when he'd spot you. How you'd have everything perfectly ready for him to perform, but now having to prep all by himself. He'd begun to often forget things in his dressing room, since he'd grown so use to you having all of his props ready to go before he had even finished getting ready. He missed the way you would brush his hair out as he'd rant about things, always being so careful to not yank his hair when you'd encounter a tangle or two. You would tell him tales of your adventures from the ship you'd been on previously, often finding himself falling asleep to your voice, it hurt to not be able to hear it at all. Overall he missed you, and all the things you did, even the things that'd typically get on his nerves.

He may not have loved you at that moment in time you'd left, but as each day passed he could feel himself at least developing feelings for you and he'd begun to believe that there was a real possibility he would fall for you if he did embrace these budding feelings. Though he'd messed it all up and lost you as a result, it was something he could never forgive himself for.

Buggy was currently sat looking over some documents related to the next step of his and Alvida's plans, about ready to just give up on reading them for now to go distract his mind from his own thoughts. That's when he heard it, the sounds of cheering from the deck followed by heavy footsteps and his door bursting open.

"Captian!" Cabaji stood in the doorway, out of breath with wide grin on his face. "You're gonna want to see who just came on board."

Filled with a mix of dread and excitement, Buggy followed his subordinate out to the commotion on deck, finding his men surrounding around what he assumed was someone. When he'd approached, the crowd of his crew parted to give him a clear path to see who'd they'd been crowding around. He saw the famed Fire Fist Ace which was interesting, but more importantly he saw you standing there on his deck.

Your attention was on Riche, petting the large lion's mane, until you noticed the sudden silence of everyone, you turned to follow their gaze, seeing Buggy standing there. His eyes were wide, mouth slightly agape as if he'd been processing if what he was seeing was real or not.

"Hey..." As soon as the word left your lips you'd felt a weight crashing into you in an instant. Buggy detached himself from his legs, his upper half had flown to you grabbing you tightly in a hug and spinning you up off the ground.

Eventually when the spinning had stopped and you'd found yourself stood once more on your own two feet, Buggy's legs made their way over reattaching to the torso that still held you in his arms. "I've missed you... God have I missed you" His voice was barely above a whisper as he freed you from his grasp.

It was bittersweet to hear him say that, it meant he'd held something for you in his heart but you dared not assume it was anything other than platonic. "I missed you too."

Riche now jealous you'd stopped giving him attention, began to nudge you with his nose. "Alright, alright! I missed you too buddy." You went back to petting him, gaining a little growl in satisfaction from him. The crowd of pirates around you kicked back to life a moment later, begining to celebrate your return and getting to know Ace who'd brought you back to them.

You'd been kept busy for the next few hours, from catching up with your friends to telling tales of what you'd gone through with the straw hats. Everyone was excited to see you again, even Alvida who'd given you a flick on the forehead acolding you not to go running off again, leaving the crew in such bad spirits over your absence.

At some point you'd managed to slip away from the party that'd moved below deck, making your way to the top deck to get some fresh air. You'd found Buggy standing with his back to you juggling a set of colored rubber balls, fumbling and nearly dropping them when you cleared your throat to make your presence known.

"Shouldn't you be downstairs partying with your crew?" You question as he turned to face you.

"I could say the same to you, especially considering they're celebrating your return." He slid the rubber balls back into a pouch, putting it into his coat pocket.

"Damn, you got me there." You smirked, leaning your back on the railing closest to him. "Needed a break from them is all."

"You saying they're too much to handle or something?" He joked coming to stand closer to you.

"Not exactly, I've missed everyone a great deal, but I've also missed being able to just relax. Those straw hats are too adventurous for me."

His head cocked to the side, an eyebrow raising itself on his face. "And we're not? I'd argue we've been on more adventures than those brats have."

"It's not that they adventure more, it's that they seem to jump head first into everything and everyone in the crew is expected to come along. Felt like I literally had to fight for my life daily, almost got turned into a wax statue, endured an avalanche then nearly died of heatstroke in a desert. Even got put on Crocodile's shit list." You groaned.

"How the hell did they get you on a warlord's bad side?!" Buggy's eyes practically popped out of his skull, before he dramatically turned his nose away all snootily and waved a hand dismissively at you. "No, that's too preposterous to think my little Y/n could ever be on anyone's kill list. I mean you don't even take part in anything that could be considered dirty or dangerous, much less doing something worthy enough of anyone wanting you dead."

You stiffened a little. "Uh since when am I your little anything?"

The man froze, he hadn't even realized he'd called you his, it just slipped out without thinking. Quick Buggy think of something fast! "Uh- I um- I meant like your mine in terms of you're my crew. Ya know like how I could say my little Cabaji, cause he's also one of my men- one of my loyal crew!"

You gave him a skeptical look, not quite believing him but not fully understanding what he mean by it if not in the context he claimed it was. "Okay... But who said I was even joining your crew again? Maybe I have decided to travel with that guy that brought me here and we're only stopping by this ship so I can see everyone."

"You're... not staying?" His expression fell, voice shaking at the thought of you leaving again, he hadn't even thought about how this could just be a visit due to coincidence.

You were going to stay, there was no doubt in your mind that you would, but something was bothering you still. You didn't want to give Buggy the full satisfaction of knowing you're back for good. Even though it wasn't his fault he hadn't been able to return your feelings back then, he'd still hurt you when he choose to stop making time for you, and you wanted him to see that.

"If I stay things would be different, I wouldn't be coming back just to let everything play out exactly how it had been before." Your gaze was fixed on the wood of the deck, not wanting to meet his gaze or see his expression at all.

"Of course things will be different. I promise I'll make time for you, make you a priority again." He stood up straighter, a hand reaching out to you, only for you to swat it away and turn away from him completely.

"No." You took a heavy breath, willing yourself to keep it together. "I didn't do this all for your attention, I did it so I wouldn't have to see you."

Turning finally you were able to see just how broken Buggy looked as he processed your words, trying to choose his own carefully. "Did you grow to hate me that much?"

"No I grew to love you that much. To the point my heart was aching constantly knowing you didn't feel the same. That you were giving your not just your attention but also your time to someone far more attractive and powerful than I could ever hope to be. I was broken when you found me, you put me back together, made me feel somewhat special and like you cared, only to have you cut me off completely when you brought her on. I know that just like you don't love me, you don't love her either, but my brain didn't see it that way. I had to get away in order to get over my own feelings, even though it hurt like hell to leave everyone- to leave YOU behind. I suffered physically with that crew while I suffered emotionally over missing you." At this point you were shaking with anger at not only him but yourself as well.

"Do- Do you still love me?" He had swallowed hard, to scared to look into your eyes and see the truth before you could answer.

Your fist clenched "What the fuck does it matter if I do or don't anymore? I'm trying to tell you how being close to you hurts me."

"Please just answer the question." His tone was pleading, pulling perfectly at the strings of your heart.

Sighing and closing your eyes for a moment, you responded honestly. "Yes I still love you. I never stopped and at this point I don't think I ever could stop."

The pirate sighed with relief, smiling at you. "Thank God... I feared you didn't."

You scowled. "This isn't a joke!" Swinging your fist in an attempt to punch him. He'd dodged it easily, grabbing you as he did and pulled you to his chest. You didn't try to fight your way out of his arms, giving in letting him hold you as you'd finally began crying, letting out all the pent up emotions from inside you. You'd been on the verge of breaking ever since you got onboard, somehow managing to keep up the facade and keep yourself together until this moment when you he embraced you like you'd longed for him to do since the day you'd left.

One of his hands came up to pet your head comfortingly. "I'm sorry- I'm so so sorry you've been in so much pain because of me. I fucked up, I knew I did as soon as you left. I shouldn't have let you leave in the first place, I should have fought for you to stay. I could never dare compare my hurt to yours but you should know that I've been hurting badly in your absence as well. I took your presence for granted and when it was gone I realized just how much I missed you. I missed all the things that we'd do together and all the little things you did for me."

He pushed you away from him gently, just enough so he could see your face and you see his. "Missing you made me realize, I like you. I don't quite love you like you love me but I do have feelings for you that Im sure will blossom into love. I'd subconsciously buried them out of instinct to protect myself so I could never feel betrayed or abandoned again. Regrettably It took you leaving to bring them out of hiding."

You're eyes sparkled in the sunset, gaze fixed on the Tall clown. "Do you want to let them blossom into love though?"

Gloved hands cupped your cheeks as his eyes looked deeply into yours. "More than anything, I want to let them blossom untill I practically have a field of flowers and feelings that have bloomed with love for you. Will you allow me to fall in love with you?"

You smiled sweetly answering in a sugared tone. "Of course Buggy." Then you punched him in the gut.

He released you, doubling over in pain as he held the spot where your fist had landed, groaning in a pained tone. "What the hell was that for?"

"For dodging my earlier punch, and for being an idiot." You crossed your arms, watching as the man you loved was in pain thanks to your own doing.

"....Fair enough" He croaked "Your punch has gotten a bit stronger, so congrats on that."

Cabaji came to bring you a drink, finding the captain bent over in pain and you standing smugly above him. "Uh, what happened here?"

"Buggy just confessed his feeling for me, and basically asked me out." You smiled taking the drink he handed you.

"Oh..." He replied, both of you taking a sip of your drinks, looking down at the pained pirate clown. "NICE!"

#op buggy #buggy the clown #buggy x reader #i imagined at the end cabaji giving a thumbs up like that meme of the kid at the computer

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swordsmans · 1 year

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a lengthy breakdown of why ch. 878 is one of the best luffy moments in the entire series (to me)

question: favorite luffy moment?

oooomg it would have to be the scene in ch. 878 immediately after pedro's death--when luffy 1) snaps the crew out of their grief because they're in danger, 2) comes up with an extremely efficient escape plan for his crew 3) comes up with an extremely efficient plan to deal with katakuri 4) snaps the crew out of their grief again 5) gets the crew to execute their escape 6) executes his own plan (+ bonus moment in 880/881 because it's technically the "end" of this scene).

this whole moment on the ship is the Captain Of The Straw Hat Pirates moment for me. hang on, i'm gonna include manga caps because i dont think ive ever talked about the way the dialogue is set up in this scene before and im stealing this opportunity lmao

like, we almost never see luffy really engage with his role as captain and leader in a traditional sense--yes, he's captain, but in most arcs he fits the "The Big Guy" role more than the leader, and often the broader captain-ish duties fall to other characters (e.g. planning and executing strategy outside of battle, mostly). like, half of the entire joke in both dressrosa and wano is that luffy doesn't plan (even though we, the readers, know that he does) and yet in WCI he not only showcases his skills as a leader but does so flawlessly.

(for context, "The Big Guy" is basically the trope of like... the most powerful person, the one you know is always going to win/solve any problem by the end of it--the character who's going to fight the biggest bad in a story and who often can't deal with "little" problems within a story because it would undermine the internal logic of a story's power-scaling. i have many thoughts on The Big Guy and i think one piece is one of the few series that does it well, along with spyxfamily re: yor... but i digress.)

so here's where i think the "moment" starts in ch. 878. for a refresher, in ch. 877 luffy+co reach the sunny, fine chopper/brook encased in candy, katakuri attacks, big mom attacks, the sunny gets stuck in candy, and then pedro sacrifices himself. at this point in time, luffy+co have been on the ship for all of a few seconds--in 877, nami is trying to set up a coup de burst and explain how it works to jinbei at the same time, luffy is holding off katakuri, but nothing is really happening. when pedro sacrifices himself no one knows what his plan is so they don't have time to incorporate it into their escape strategy (which is basically nonexistent at this point). then--wham! pedro is down, the candy breaks, and there's a split-second of decision time that luffy jumps on, which brings us to 878

everyone is shocked and grieving, their tentative set-up is completely derailed, and luffy immediately takes charge--starting with "can we fly, nami?!"

he addresses nami as the navigator/in charge of the physical ship itself a this point (+ she set up the coup de burst in 877), then addresses the crew as a whole in "let's set sail, people!!"--like, the way this is phrased sets him apart slightly as someone with the authority to speak to the group as a whole; he's getting everyone's attention. then his declaration!!! "if we waste this moment... then we throw away his sacrifice!!"

he's completely taking charge of the situation and focusing on getting the rest of the crew to safety. it is his job as captain to look out for the whole, so he doesn't waste a second--which is so incredible, because we know luffy is emotional, that's his whole thing. he's incredibly emotionally-driven and emotionally-intelligent, but during this entire scene he is being emotionally driven to protect his crew, which in turn gives time for his (often-overlooked) intelligence and pragmatism to shine.

once he has everyone's attention as a group, he goes back to addressing crew members individually--which i think is really important because that's, like, literally what you do in a crisis when you're taking charge. you get everyone on the same page, then you single people out so no one feels lost or unmoored--everyone has something to do, everyone feels included in the solution in some way.

in these two pages alone, he addresses nami, chopper, and brook individually, and then jinbei responds (so he's also participating individually). i think the fact that carrot is excluded here also kind of supports this whole thing, because carrot isn't technically a straw hat--luffy isn't her captain, even though she's under his protection at this point. here, he's ordering his crew in his capacity as a leader.

and then, of course, there's the moment:

yes, he's talking to katakuri here, but he's also on the sunny's deck screaming--and his address to the crew doesn't have a distinct "end point" from a dialogue perspective, he just gets cut off when katakuri attacks carrot. here, i think he's declaring this as much to katakuri as the straw hats themselves. i think the "end" of this whole scene in 880/881 when he reassures the crew (after holding the fucking mirror shards in his mouth--god this whole scene is just so good) that everything will be fine supports this, too, because that feels like the end of the crew address to me. but i'll get there.

now that he has the crew on track to execute their own escape (by giving them step by step orders to do so, basically), he tackles the katakuri problem. at this point, he's already figured out what to do, because he's gearing up for the elephant gun grip that he uses to pull katakuri into the mirror world, and he doesn't tell anyone else his plan because it's his responsibility as captain to take care of the crew (as opposed to just his responsibility as The Big Guy to take out the strongest enemy, which--if we were just adhering to The Big Guy trope, i think he would have shouted his plan along with everything else. basically authority [no one needs to know my plan because it's my responsibility to handle it and i know i will] vs. equality [im the strongest but we're all in this together so here's what im going to do], and he's authority.)

then we get another crew address, this time starting individually then talking to the group. they see the shadow--they realize pedro has died but perospero has survived--nami is seconds from absolutely spiraling again (just look at that panel of her, oh my god). further proof that luffy is the most emotionally intelligent character in the entire series, luffy immediately redirects everyone's attention a second time, focusing them away from their grief again and onto their own escape again.

since this is, like, a second wave of grief/horror, he starts with the individual address--snapping everyone out of it directly because a whole-crew address might not cut it and he needs to include carrot, here.

then mid-address, he grabs brulee and starts executing his katakuri takedown plan. his focus here is entirely on keeping his crew safe in the most efficient way possible, and in two pages we get: assessing the situation (grief 2) -> solving the immediate problem (the escape plan starts to derail, everyone needs to snap back out of it) -> solving the next problem (katakuri) -> inspiring them to carry on because he's about to leave.

(seriously. i cannot overstate how great the brulee grab mid-dialogue is in the broader context of this scene. seriously.)

(also, the way the group -> individual -> individual -> group address works in this whole scene feels like such a beautiful closed dialogue loop... even on a structural level it's designed to have the biggest possible impact. love u oda.)

then, of course, we have the culmination of this whole thing--the mirror smash. with ruthless efficiency, he not only isolates the biggest immediate threat (katakuri) but also the character who poses the biggest danger to the crew's escape--brulee. all three of them have been completely separated from his crew, and now he can both keep an eye on brulee and the mirrors (which is most of 880/881), the "intelligence" part of the plan, and confront katakuri directly, the "battle" part of the plan.

also, the decision to isolate katakuri works both ways here--he's not only protecting the crew from katakuri as an enemy, but he's also protecting the crew from their fight. we see in subsequent chapters that the katakuri fight absolutely decimates the mirror world. if they were to face off anywhere near the sunny, people would get hurt. if katakuri were to escape, not only could he harm the crew but luffy would have to give chase and bring the fight back to katakuri, wherever he ends up (attacking the crew). i fully believe the decision to isolate brulee shows that he's aware of this--their fight has to stay in the mirror world, because the only way he'll win is by operating at full power and his full power is destructive.

also--this moment is just really cool, okay? it's so, so cool.

honorable mention to the rest of this "scene" as it's continued in the next few chapters, specifically the way this whole thing culminates--luffy holding the last mirror shards in his mouth to make sure he can communicate his final reassurances to the crew without the risk of those shards falling into enemy hands.

to me, this is as solidly and completely an "i'm the captain of this ship!" moment as the declaration itself, and every time i think about it for more than 0.2 seconds i start to go crazy. but. it it technically a different "moment" (and is also extremely self-explanatory) so i won't go into it here.

also, side note because this didn't fit anywhere--i think this scene not only stands on its own as one of luffy's most badass moments but also works as a really amazing example of his character growth--particularly compared to scenes like the usopp fight in water 7 (different scenario technically because usopp isn't an enemy, but it is one of the premier moments when he struggles with the burden of being captain).

anyway, sorry this got stupid long *jazz hands*

#one piece #luffy #op analysis #i dont know if i have any kind of tag for this stuff actually #since i almost never do anything like this outside of dms #however... this is also a perfect example of why i DONT rlly do analysis outside the dms... because it's stupid long #gyro.txt

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ofstoriesandstardust · 4 months

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and i can wish all that i want but it won't bring us together (n.p.t.)

note: this is my Christmas present to @cottagecori who listens to everything i have to say

summary: How it began.

the waiting room series

warnings: quote unquote affairs, swearing, alcohol, bisexual reader, non-linear storytelling, told from multiple perspectives, this may not be your cup of tea and that's okay!

word count: 3.9k

December 2021

Your hand shakes as you move to wipe away the tear that began to fall down your face. Sam’s hand finds yours, squeezing.

“I’m sorry.” You hear your best friend whisper. “You didn’t deserve this. I’m sorry.”

May 2021

Meeting Natasha had been like coming home after a long day, warm and safe.

You’d only been back in San Diego for a week and a half when you’d run into her on your first day volunteering at the U.S.S. Midway. They’d been having an event for certain Navy personnel and needed extra hands, which is how you'd ended up meeting her.

Even dressed in her formal blues and her hair pinned back in a tight bun, you’d been left more than a little flustered by her striking beauty, much to the amusement of the other volunteer you’d been working with.

She’d been kind, chatting with you as there was a delay in the program, her nimble fingers brushing yours as she takes a booklet from you.

You’ll blame the redness of your cheeks on the beaming sun atop the retired Naval aircraft carrier before you’d ever admit such a short interaction had left you feeling so much.

But Sofia knows, as you will come to learn that she always does, and mentions that a bunch of the younger volunteers, kids of Navy officers, are headed to a local Navy bar for the evening. Invites you along with the promise of a good evening.

And you know, in your soul, that you don’t typically enjoy nights out. Not in packed, crowded bars, certainly not surrounded by drunken military men.

But this part of your life is supposed to be different and it will never be different if you don’t make decisions you normally wouldn’t.

So with a twinkle in Sofia’s eye and a warm smile on her face, you link your arm with her and follow her off the looming ship on the shores of La Jolla.

In hindsight, you should’ve known. Should’ve taken the twinkle in Sofia’s eye for mirth and laughter and trouble, but you can hardly bring yourself to care as Natasha’s mouth slots against yours. As one hand rests in your belt loops and the other soft yet firm against your cheek.

The loud music in the bar seems to drown out in the corner you’re tucked away in, any and all thoughts fleeting as Natasha’s surprisingly soft lips press against yours again and again. She’s all you can focus on, the warmth spreading through your body as you think about how good it feels to be doing this again, to be doing this with her.

Falling in love with Natasha is simple.

It’s easy, like falling asleep.

She’s as kind as she is strong-willed, a duality that shouldn’t exist together but does.

You can see, even from easy conversation, how much she cares about this team that she’s stationed with, how much they’re family to her.

She’s older than you, not by much, but enough to make you feel like she’s one of those real adults you always joke about with your friends. It’s something that should make you insecure, dating someone who had their life and shit together but never does. Natasha isn’t like that, would never make you feel small.

Her friends might, a few of them making teasing comments about if you’re even of legal drinking age the first time she brings you back to the Hard Deck, but you know that you have always looked younger than you are.

(You’d worked with middle schoolers in your freshman year of college and they all thought you were 14. You knew.)

But still, Natasha is there, warding them off with a witty comeback and a hand on your back, something that settles your nerves more than any amount of alcohol ever could. She didn’t have to do this, you knew, remembering the way your ex had let you sit there as you got torn apart by his friends.

But Natasha isn’t him. She’s kind, and warm, and light. She listens to you on your good days and your bad days, makes you coffee on late nights as you slouch over books and an open Google Doc, and brings you groceries when she knows you’ll be too busy to remember to do it yourself.

She makes sure you always feel seen and heard. She goes to the airport with you to pick up Sam and Fran when they move back to San Diego and joins you on game nights with your cohort and your friends from the Midway. She supports all your dreams, no matter how small they may seem to other people. She has your friends from college giggling over a margarita about how they’re impressed you finally managed to date someone who’s nice to you. She makes it a point to be at all your presentations and always read through the drafts of your thesis when it feels like your eyes might melt.

In short, Natasha loves you. To her, it’s simple and honestly, how could you not love her in return?

Natasha knows you and loves you. She loves you because she knows you.

Which is why it feels like a dagger cut so deep when Natasha admits to you that she knew.

November 2017

His fingers tremble with rage as he sets the paper down, barely breathing as he struggles to meet his partner’s eye.

“How long?” He whispers.

“Tom-”

“How. long.” He grits out.

Pete sighs. “Since August.”

“Three months.” He whispers. “Three months and you hid this from me the whole time?”

“You were sick Tom, I needed you to get better. You never would if you had known. And- And I hardly know anything as it is-”

“You know enough.” He spits out, eyes unable to look at just one piece of information on the papers scattered out in front of him. “And this girl? What do you plan to do?”

Pete sighs again. “She’s my daughter, Tom. I have to know her. I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t.” He whispers, a fact that is making bile rise in his still-healing throat.

“No.” He says with a quick shake of his head. “No. If you want to stay married to me, she stays out of our life.”

July 2021

“Okay, thoughts?” You say, stepping out into the living room.

“You look pretty!” Fran exclaims as Sam nods his head in agreement.

You weren’t sure what was appropriate attire to meet Natasha’s friends, other than Natasha telling you to wear whatever made you most comfortable. You’d been through six different outfits, each one being pulled off faster than the last.

“But we’ve said that about all of them.”

You heave a sigh, flattening out the skirt of the dress. “I know but-”

“No buts. You look incredibly pretty and Nat is going to like you just as much as she did yesterday.” Sam says firmly.

You sigh again, glancing at him. “I wish you guys were coming with me.” You admit quietly before plopping down on the couch next to Fran.

Fran leans over to straighten the straps of the dress, as she offers you a knowing smile. “You’re gonna have a good time. Sam and I can entertain ourselves for an evening, you know.”

“I did live here for a while, remember!” Sam shouts from the kitchen.

When had he gone into the kitchen?

You hum as a knock sounds at the door, signaling Natasha’s arrival. You push yourself off the couch to answer her, unable to swallow the smile that spreads when you realize she’s brought you flowers.

“You didn’t have to.” You whisper, taking the bunches of sunflowers from her.

“I wanted to.” She says, pressing a kiss to your cheek before you can go far. She shuts the door behind her, following you into the foyer and then the living room. Fran brightens as she sees Natasha.

“Let me take these from you.” Fran offers, before extending her other hand to Natasha. “You must be Natasha. I’m Fran. Sam’s in the kitchen. Babe, do you have a vase?”

“I don’t know.” He calls back. “Why would we need a- oh.” Sam gives you a grin as he appears. “Yeah, let me see if I can rustle something up. Why don’t you kids get out of here?” You roll your eyes, ignoring the flaming of your cheeks as Natasha takes your hand, bidding your friends farewell.

Nat’s right hand finds your thigh, drawing circles into your skin with her thumb as she pulls out of your driveway.

“So remind me how you know Sam and Fran?”

“Sam and I had a mutual friend, his old co-worker and a friend of mine from college. We ended up really hitting it off and ended up dropping the friend that introduced us, as awful as that makes me sound. They’re just visiting for the weekend and I’m actually staying in his family’s place right now.”

She hums. “That’s very kind of him.”

You huff out a little laugh. “You’re telling me.”

The Hard Deck is less noisy this time around, although your eyes still struggle to adjust to the dim light of the bar as you push your sunglasses up to the top of your head.

Natasha guides you past the bar, promising to return later as she directs you to the pool table in the back. Her hands are firm against your shoulder blades as you walk.

“Boys.” She calls, earning the attention of the men crowded around the pool table. They all turn, catching sight of you and you have to fight not to curl into Natasha. “This is my girlfriend.”

The tall one, the blond, grins, being a little too sharp around the edges for your liking. “Are you sure she should even be in here Phoenix?”

Her thumbs press into your shoulders as if to say breathe, relax, i got this.

“Pretty sure you’re the one that likes them below the legal drinking age Bagman.”

“Back off, Seresin.” A brunette says, pushing him out of the way. “I’m Bradley.” He says, extending his hand to you. You take it, giving him a soft smile.

You’d heard about Rooster, Nat’s best friend. “Nice to meet you.”

“This is Bob and Fanboy.” Nat says, pointing to your left. “Behind them is Payback and Coyote. The irritating blond is Bagman.”

“Hangman-”

“The rest of the crew will be in shortly.” You wave to the boys, struggling to not make yourself feel small in their looming presence. “It looks like Mav is over at the bar, why don’t you come with me? I want to introduce the two of you.”

You nod, intertwining your fingers with her as the two of you walk back towards the bar.

“Mav.” She calls, earning the attention of a shorter man. A fond smile blooms on his weary face, turning from his conversation with the bartender.

“Lieutenant Trace, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

“Mav, this is my girlfriend. This is Captain Pete Mtichell, my commanding officer.”

Pete’s smile almost seems to fade at the sight of you, but he must think better of any immediate negative thoughts as he extends a hand. “Nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

Mav lets your hand go, turning to the person sitting next to him, an older man with graying hair. “Tom, this is Phoenix’s girlfriend.”

The man, Tom, frowns at Pete. “I can hear Pete.”

Natasha lets out a little laugh. “This is Tom Kazansky, Captain Mitchell’s husband.”

Tom tips his head in greeting. “Good to meet you.”

October 2020

He watches the careful rise and fall of his husband’s chest.

Up. Down.

He can tell by the stillness of his body his husband is nearing sleep, even though the bruising from two different emergency ejections had left him favoring his left side and sleeping in an awkward position.

He swallows at the reminder at the near loss of his husband.

The seed that had been planted when the Darkstar crashed - which felt ages ago by now - had bloomed, its ivy wrapping tight around his lungs.

It choked his lungs every time he breathed, thorns cutting deep, the thought that Pete might die and die resenting him for never being able to know his daughter.

“Pete?” He whispers.

His husband stirs, blearily looking at him in the dim light of the bedroom.

The dim light of their bedroom in their nice house by the ocean. The dim light of their bedroom in their nice house by the ocean, where they had comfortably lived and loved and laughed, something she had never known.

“Tom? What is it?”

“I changed my mind.”

He catches on to the shine of Pete’s wedding band, even as he tries to move, letting out a low hiss as he does.

“Changed your mind? Changed your mind about what, baby?”

“I’ve changed my mind. If- If you want to know her. If you want to find her again, I’d be okay with that, I think. I want you to be able to know your daughter.”

April 2021

His brain is swimming with information, his heart clenching every time a portion of it gets processed.

“So, you found her?” Ice says quietly.

Mav hums in affirmation. “She’s graduating college this year. In a month.”

“It’s crazy to me Pete, really it is. That you have a daughter out there.” His Mom says after a minute.

“And I could know her.”

Pete’s trying to explain it to him, the private investigator, the affair, the daughter, and all he can feel is that ache in his chest where the scar of betrayal still sits, unhealed and raw.

A daughter.

“You- you’re fucking with me, right Mav? A daughter?”

Mav’s face falls in that way that it does, his shoulders deflating a bit before shaking his head. “No, B. This is real. I have a daughter and I’m trying to find her. I- I think we did.”

Bradley has to bite his cheek to keep his initial words from leaving his mouth. “This is bullshit.”

“B, I understand that this is all new, especially with the mission having not been that long ago-”

“No, it’s bullshit Mav. You knew where I was for over a decade and you never once tried to find me or contact me. You’ve known about her for five minutes and suddenly you’re hiring a PI to try and find her?”

Mav lets out a little breath. “I’ve known since 2017.”

Bradley chokes on his spit. “And what the fuck makes now such a great time?”

“Well, for starters, she was a minor when I first found out about her existence. Her Mom never would have let me anywhere near her. Plus, Tom was not on board with the idea of having her in our lives-”

“Oh, and he is now?” Mav opens his mouth to keep talking but he beats him to the punch. “I mean, we don’t even know that she wants you in her life, Mav! For fuck’s sake Mav, you’d probably screw her over before you ever got a chance to pretend to be her Dad, given your track record. You’ll be two for two fucking up your pseudo kids before they hit 30.”

“Bradley.” His Mom says sternly, coming into his swimming vision. He presses the heels of his palms into his stinging eyes, wondering when he had started crying. “Bradley, baby, I think you’re a little sensitive to the situation, you’re not seeing it from Pete’s point of view-”

“I don’t need to. I hope for that girl’s sake you stay away from her.”

December 2021

Nat plays with the strap of your nice dress as you both watch the blond pilot amble his way towards the two of you at Pete and Tom’s small holiday get-together.

Your head rests on her collarbone as she appears before you, grinning like he has a secret.

“I think I found out why Roo has been fighting with Pops.”

Coyote and Fanboy overhear Jake, leaning in to hear him as they crowd around the armchair you and Natasha are sitting in.

“Eavesdropping, are we Bagman?” Nat asks, fingertips moving from your strap to your shoulder to begin grazing your arm. You snort, leaning further into your girlfriend.

“Maybe.” He says hurriedly before waving her off. “Apparently, dear old Maverick had some kind of illicit affair back in the day and has a daughter as a result.”

Javy chokes on his drink as Mickey’s eyes widen. Natasha rolls her eyes. “You need to get your ears checked.”

Jake shakes his head. “No, no, I’m serious. Mav has been trying to find her since last year after the mission happened. I guess he did and is trying to get in contact with her.”

“So how is any of this Bradshaw’s problem?” Javy asks.

Jake shrugs. “Not a clue. But, I mean-”

Speaking of him, Bradley appears in your vision rather abruptly.

“Why did your parents get a divorce?”

You blink, beginning to feel confused at the sharp question from the boy in front of you. “Um, my mom cheated.”

“So, you know then.”

“Know what? Know that my Mom’s a piece of shit?” You let out a nervous laugh, starting to feel unsteady as you pull away from Natasha. “Yeah, I’ve known that.”

“So then you know Mav is your biological father.”

You blink again. “What- is this some kind of like- prank?”

Bradley’s gaze hardens. “Why the hell would I joke about this?”

“Rooster, man, what are you even talking about?” Coyote asks.

“I mean, are you just like- pretending to like my friend so you can get closer to Mav?”

“Bradshaw, whoa-” Natasha says, pushing herself off the chair.

“No, Nat! She’s probably just using you to get closer to Mav and that’s so fucked up.”

It feels like the room is spinning as the yelling catches Pete’s attention, bringing him across the living room as people have begun to watch what's unfolding.

“Hey, cut it out, all of you. What is going on?”

“Is it true?”

You hear yourself ask the words, suddenly feeling too big for your own body.

It takes Pete a moment to understand but when he does his face falls and it’s enough.

It’s enough.

“Oh my god.” You mumble. “Oh my god. I think I’m gonna be sick.”

You push yourself off the chair, pushing at your sternum as if it will relieve the pressure there.

Natasha grabs your arm. “Hey-”

“Did you know?”

The hesitance in her eyes answers your question but the whispered “I had my suspicions.” takes your breath clean from you.

You don’t remember leaving the party.

You do remember pressing at your sternum over and over, pressing harder with each ring on your phone that passed.

You remember collapsing on to the curb of a sidewalk blocks from the party, the grief insurmountable.

You remember begging Sam to come pick you up and choking on sobs as Fran whispered soothing words through the phone.

You don’t remember much after that.

#natasha phoenix trace #natasha phoenix trace fic #natasha phoenix trace x reader #top gun: maverick #top gun: maverick fic #the waiting room series

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canonmisogynyvictimstournament · 8 months

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PROPAGANDA

MARWA (WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (TV SERIES)) (CW: Mind Control)

1.) okok so a major character (nandor) uses a genie wish to bring back the 37 wives he had when he was human (he’s a vampire who was turned in the 1400s but is alive in the modern day) to pick his favorite to live with and settles on marwa. she’s established as someone who’s passionate about science and mathematics, but nandor uses his genie wishes to essentially mold her into his perfect woman like a doll, from changing her hair color to making her not want to go to the night market with him to making her like all the things he likes. this culminates in him LITERALLY TRANSFORMING HER INTO A BRITISH MAN NAMED FREDDIE and that is her send off from the show. the treatment of her is disgusting i’m sorry for ranting i love wwdits but honestly the whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth

2.) WHERE TO START my god. Marwa is introduced into the story as one of a crowd of women who are interchangeable to the man summoning them, WHO IS HER CANONICAL HUSBAND but he gives less than half a fuck about her, which is played for laughs. The writers made it completely unclear whether she is a real person or basically a magical simulation with no inner life and did not bother to clarify that at any point. Her plotline consists of her husband using magical wishes to modify various aspects of her body and mind and the writers never explore whether she is aware this is happening or not, much less how she might be experiencing it. It is a terrifying psychological horror story from her perspective but we are not given any insight into her perspective so who cares I guess!! For example, he wishes for her to have a rounder ass and then wishes that all of her preferences align perfectly with his own, so that she'll stop nagging him about wanting different colored flowers at their wedding than him. There are SEVERAL more examples. Her experience of having all of her desires replaced with her husband's desires shows up only for jokes, plus one moment that is used to confirm that her husband's real love interest is one of the other male leads in the show. (I ship the two male characters, I'm not complaining about that, but like COME ON SHE WAS A HUMAN PERSON ONCE AND SHE IS LIVING IN A HORROR MOVIE AND THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE DOING WITH THAT???) THE WORST PART is that when it's time for her to exit the story because her body and personality have already been essentially replaced by magic and she is now a boring toy, she is LITERALLY PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY transformed into a random British man so that her husband can have that guy as a love interest instead of her. She (he? It? Again it is never NEVER explored whether Marwa is like, alive inside this British man's mind somehow? Or if she was ever really alive in her body?) moves to England to be in love with the original British man she was based off of, so basically her twin. This is also played for laughs. Her entire personality and body are not even killed off with like a death scene but literally ERASED FROM REALITY AND REPLACED WITH A COPY OF THIS SHITTY WHITE DUDE.

3.) (Context: Nandor is a vampire who has been alive for a while. When he was human he had 37 wives. (Btw some of the wives were men but that’s besides the point.))

She was brought back to life (along with a couple others) via Djinn wish just because Nandor wanted to have a ‘wife’ (some of the ‘wives’ are men). After being deemed the ‘best wife’ by Nandor she is the only one left alive. It is clear the entire fourth season that Nandor doesn’t care for her much and she is only there because Nandor wants to be married to someone. He ignores her wants and interests the whole season. Via another Djinn wish Nandor makes Marwa like everything he likes so she is more agreeable with him. Later on, he meets another character’s boyfriend named Freddie. Nandor basically falls for Freddie immediately and via Djinn wish, wishes Marwa to be exactly Freddie. :| With that wish, Marwa is effectively gone. She now looks and acts like Freddie. The two Freddies meet and after freaking out a little (and some magic) they get along because they like the same exact things. By the end of the season both Freddies are sent off to never be seen again. Also, Nandor has some extra Djinn wishes so he could’ve turned Marwa back but he didn’t.

Additional links: Article about the Freddie thing: https://www.themarysue.com/what-we-do-in-the-shadows-missed-hard-with-its-treatment-of-marwa/

She likes what he likes:

Also This:

MIKOKO SAKAZAKI (KAIJI)

1.) She is one of two (2) women with a speaking role in the manga (which has been ongoing since the 90s), and was the first female character to appear at all. She has a crush on the protagonist, Kaiji, but this is treated as a joke/ as gross because of her appearance. She is meant to be ugly because of the size of her nose and lips and therefore is invalid as a person. She has no role other than to pester Kaiji with her crush, and despite him ignoring or acting weirded out around her constantly, her attraction to him never fades. She gets almost no characterization outside of this and is only seen once after Kaiji leaves, where she is drawing a manga where he comes back to her. When she's shown once in a bikini, the sight is so disgusting to the protagonist that he sprints away at full speed. Despite this, she is sometimes used in ads for the series.

2.) Her face looks "too much like her father's", yet he never receives any negativity for it. Every single male character in the manga has the same style of facial features, yet when the creator puts them on a woman it makes her mockable and gross.

#polls #round 1 #week 1 #new #cw mind control

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hellsbeenbettersincehesplit · 1 month

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The latest oneshot is finally here! Inspired by replies to this post by @sky-marbles !

In this, Vaggie learns pole dancing from Angel Dust in an effort by him to convince her to let him teach the hotel in a group bonding session. Featuring dancer!vaggie, no romance beyond one or two background ships, no actual sexual content (just references and a couple jokes), and unexpected friendship :)

I'd prefer if you read this on Ao3, but my works are archive-locked, so if you don't have an Ao3 account and thus can't read it on there it's also under the cut!

No Bonding Like *checks notes* Pole Dancing

Vaggie crossed her arms, barely suppressing a sigh. “We’re not stripping as a group activity. That’s final. I don’t have anything against stripping itself, but Charlie’s group bonding sessions aren’t supposed to be sexual.”

Angel huffed. “I didn’t say stripping, I said pole dancing. There’s a difference.”

Vaggie raised an eyebrow.

“There is! Pole dancing is an art. Stripping is also an art when it’s done right, and strippers were the ones who created pole, but pole dance itself isn’t inherently about sex.”

“You’re not exactly convincing me here.”

“Look, I know it can be. Why do you think I learned?” He sighed. “But it doesn’t have to be. It’s like…” He thought for a second. “It’s like how art of naked people can be for anatomy shit, or for porn, or for both.”

Vaggie remained unconvinced.

“How about this.” Angel stretched as he stood from the hotel couch. “I spend an afternoon teaching you a bit of pole, and you approach it with an open mind. If you still think it’s ‘just sex,’ I’ll never bring it up again. But if you do change your mind, we have that group bonding session.”

“Why should I take you up on that when I can just say no as-is?”

“I’d just ask Charlie. We both know she’s easier to convince.”

Vaggie groaned. Why did he have to be right? “Fine. Look, I can’t promise we’ll allow it even if you can convince me. But you can try.”

And so, that was how Vaggie had found herself in a room with Angel Dust and a pole-dancing pole. It occurred to her that she was likely the only person in Hell to have ever had that sentence apply to her without it being sexual in some way. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other awkwardly. Honestly, she’d kind of been dreading this.

Angel Dust looked her up and down. “You’re going to need skin-to-skin contact with the pole. The jacket has to go. The bike shorts should be fine, though.”

Reluctantly, Vaggie took off the jacket. Angel seemed to approve of the loose t-shirt (most likely Charlie’s) that Vaggie had on.

“Alright,” Angel said decisively. “Let’s get started.”

It was very different from what Vaggie expected. The moves Angel had started her out with were very beginner, and Vaggie actually did feel herself starting to understand it after a few tries. It was difficult in the way that learning anything new was, but Vaggie was also familiar with rhythm and dance. That familiarity led to her picking up moves faster than she’d thought she would. She was surprised to find herself genuinely enjoying the dance. She didn’t even fall half as often as she thought she would.

Likewise, being with Angel one-on-one wasn’t awful. He was a little different here than he was around others- maybe because he wasn’t flirting with Husk or Alastor or anyone, maybe because he was confident in what he was doing, maybe just because he was trying to convince her that this wasn’t sexual and making innuendos wouldn’t help him. In any case, she kind of liked this side of him.

“Convinced yet?” He’d asked her on their third break.

“Not quite,” Vaggie responded. “I mean- this hasn’t been what I thought. I’ll admit that you were right and pole dance is an art form, and it's more than I thought it was. But I have other concerns about the group setting. Namely, I think it might turn into something sexual.”

Angel rolled his eyes and offered her a hand up. “I get where you're coming from, but that could happen with literally anything. Now, you wanna practice that move a couple more times?”

Vaggie sighed and slowly stood, as something occurred to her. “Why do you only use one set of arms?” Wouldn’t extra hands make something like this easier?

“Same reason you’re not using your wings yet. I normally do, but you’re on the basics, so you learn the fundamentals that humans can do and build from there. As your teacher, I need to model that.” He raised an eyebrow. “Also, did you think I’d teach you moves that use limbs you don’t have?”

Vaggie shrugged. Honestly, she had expected that.

They were back to the dancing part. Vaggie had to admit, Angel was really fucking good at this. Vaggie herself wasn’t bad for a beginner, but every movement looked so effortless from Angel. It was almost like he was moving in a tank of water, or like his frame rate would be double hers in an animation. She was the one that could fly, but she couldn’t help but think the way Angel defied gravity was just as impressive.

“Do you do any other types of dance?” She asked after he showed her a beginner move she’d attempted 20 times look unreasonably fucking fluid.

“No?” he replied, audibly confused. “I learned this because of Val. I’m good because I’ve been doing it for half a century, but I’m not really a dancer.”

That actually got a chuckle out of Vaggie. “Not really a dancer my ass. That shit was smoother than half the ballerinas I’ve worked with. Seriously, you’d be great at another form if you do decide to try one.”

Wait. Why did he look so confused at that?

“You do ballet?”

“A bit. Also salsa and cumbia. Maybe modern dance someday.” She was pretty damn good at perreo, but she wasn’t about to tell Angel Dust that.

Now he was the one gaping. There was no way she’d forgotten to tell the others about that. Right?

“Since when are you a fucking dancer?”

She shrugged. “A year or two, I guess.”

“And you didn’t tell us?”

“It never really came up.”

“Because you never mentioned it! How’d you end up doing it in the first place?”

“Running got boring.”

“Come on, there’s gotta be more than that.”

Vaggie didn’t want to go on some long monologue, but Angel seemed genuinely curious, so it seemed to be time for the long answer.

“Exterminators are the most birdlike angels on a biological level, because we’re the ones who have to fly outside of the atmosphere of Heaven. Flying normally burns a lot of energy. When I lost my wings, that change was really hard on me. I started running to get some cardio back, and I saw an ad so I signed up for a few dance classes to get some variety. I went to one a nd… I don’t know, something clicked. Before I fell, my entire life was training. I still like running and sparring, but they’ll always be tied to all the baggage from...” her voice trailed off. “Dance is… it’s fun, you know? I’m not doing it for violence or for Lute or anyone. I’m doing it for me, and I can just lose myself in the music and moving and pursuing excellence and get that rush of endorphins in something that’s just mine.”

Angel somehow looked even more shocked. Fuck, was that oversharing?

“Shit, you’re right. I should absolutely take some classes.”

That was a strange reaction. “What?”

“Like I said, I learned this shit because of Val,” Angel pointed out. “I mean, we’ve got different tragic backstories, but I feel like I could get something similar from it, you know? As long as he doesn’t find out.”

Vaggie grinned. “Can you imagine everyone else’s faces if they see us performing as dance partners?”

That got an actual laugh out of Angel Dust. “Sir Pentious would probably think we’re dating,” he choked out. “That’s it, I’m signing up, we have to make that a reality.”

After a few hours that felt so much shorter, they wrapped up the lesson. Angel had Vaggie combine the building blocks he’d taught her into something of a short dance. She slipped up a couple times and she knew her movements were a little forced and choppy, but he looked so proud of her after that she couldn’t help but be proud too.

“So…” he asked. “What’s the decision?”

On one hand, she still thought that while pole could be not sexual, it might turn into that in a larger group. On the other hand, she had to hand it to him- this really was an art. Charlie’s rules for the hotel weren’t meant to be limiting, and Angel’s idea could be fun.

“I guess it’d be ok,” Vaggie decided. “As long as Charlie agrees with me.” She caught the little fist pump Angel did and added, “Also, we should totally do this again.”

“You want to learn for real?” There was disbelief in Angel’s voice.

“Yeah! This… was kind of nice.”

There was an excited gleam in his eyes as he responded, “Alright, but you had better make good on the salsa lessons.”

“Deal.”

Angel had honestly surprised her today. She’d known he was doing better, but she still wouldn’t have described herself as close to him. That energy of his personality being almost a performance, which Husk had loved to complain about, had given Vaggie a vibe to stay away- which she felt bad about in retrospect. Angel was more considerate than she’d expected and a shockingly good teacher.

“Hey, you better let me know how Charlie feels about all this tomorrow morning,” he told Vaggie with a suggestive wink.

Never mind, she took back all that sweet shit. She flipped him off, and smiled as she set a reminder on her phone for the date and time of the next lesson.

#hazbin hotel #hazbin #angel dust #vaggie #vaggie hazbin hotel #vaggie & angel #vagasaurus #fanfic

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shortmexicangirl · 10 months

Text

graphical representation of how songs on Speak Now (Taylor's Version) correspond to different miraculous ships/characters because YEAHHHH DATA!!!

full breakdown of each song and their corresponding category under the cut!

mine - feligami

“You learn my secrets and you figure out why I'm guarded / You say we’ll never make our parents mistakes”

sparks fly - marichat (in elation)

“Kiss me on the sidewalk, take away the pain”

back to december - first half of s5 ladynoir

“You gave me roses and I left them there to die”

speak now - adrienette (in emotion)

“Horrified looks from everyone in the room / But I'm only lookin' at you”

dear john - adrien @ gabriel agreste (gabriel agreste SUCKS #1)

“Well, maybe it's me and my blind optimism to blame / Or maybe it's you and your sick need to give love and take it away”

mean - marinette @ gabriel agreste (in pretension specifically) (gabriel agreste SUCKS #2)

“All you are is mean / And a liar, and pathetic / And alone in life, and mean / And mean, and mean, and mean”

story of us - s4 ladynoir

“A simple complication / Miscommunications lead to fall out / So many things that I wish you knew / So many walls up I can't break through”

never grow up – emilie @ adrien

“You got nothing to regret / I'd give all I have, honey / If you could stay like that”

enchanted — love square

“These are the words I held back / As I was leaving too soon / I was enchanted to meet you / Please, don't be in love with someone else”

better than revenge — marinette @ lila

"She's not a saint and she's not what you think, she's an actress"

innocent — ladybug (in strike back)

“Wasn't it easier in your lunchbox days? / Always a bigger bed to crawl into / Wasn't it beautiful when you believed in everything / And everybody believed in you?”

haunted — ladynoir (post chat blanc)

“I'm holding my breath / Won't lose you again / Something's made your eyes go cold”

last kiss — ok… i’ve always said this song is ladynoir because i miss them and i’m biased but post revolution it’s gotta be adrienette

“I do recall now the smell of the rain / Fresh on the pavement, I ran off the plane / That July ninth, the beat of your heart / It jumps through your shirt / I can still feel your arms”

long live — ladynoir (always but especially in revolution)

“Long live all the mountains we moved / I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you / I was screaming, "Long live that look on your face" / And bring on all the pretenders I’m not afraid”

ours — adrienette

“I love the riddles that you speak / And any snide remarks from my father about your tattoos / Will be ignored, 'cause my heart is yours”

superman — ladrien (adrien’s pov) (these specific lyrics are LITERALLY that chat blanc ladrien scene)

“I'm lovestruck and looking out the window / Don't forget, don't forget where I'll be / Right here, wishing the flowers were from you / Wishing the card was from you”

electric touch — adrienette (post kwami’s choice)

marinettes pov: “Just the first time ever hangin' out with you tonight / I've got my money on things goin' badly / Got a history of stories ending sadly / Still hoping that the fire won't burn me / Just one time” adriens pov: “I've been left in the rain, lost and pining / I'm tryin' hard not to look like I'm trying / ‘Cause every time I tried hard for love, it fell apart”

when emma falls in love - marinette dupain-cheng

“When Emma falls in love, she paces the floor / Closes the blinds and locks the door / When Emma falls in love, she calls up her mom / Jokes about the ways that this one could go wrong / She waits and takes her time / 'Cause Little Miss Sunshine always thinks it's gonna rain"

i can see you — feligami

“I've been watchin' you for ages / And I spend my time tryin' not to feel it / But what would you do if I went to touch you now? / What would you do if they never found us out?”

castles crumbling — ladybug (in strike back)

“And I feel like my castle's crumbling down / And I watch all my bridges burn to the ground / And you don't want to know me, I will just let you down / You don't wanna know me now”

foolish one —adrigami (kagami’s pov)

“Cause you got her on your arm and me in the wings / I'll get your longing glances, but she'll get your ring / And you will say you had the best of intentions / And maybe I will finally learn my lesson”

timeless — love square

“We would have been timeless / Cause I believe that we were supposed to find this / So, even in a different life, you still would've been mine”

ok and i'm DONE! join me next time i try to push my taylor x miraculous agenda on you all

#miraculous ladybug #taylor swift #love square #taylor swift x miraculous

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estro-gem · 4 months

Text

Ragatha x Pomni (Platonic): Charting the Landscape

The Amazing Digital Circus AU: Oasis

Author's note:

I'm not dead! I'm sorry for not posting as much; life has me in a chokehold and you all know how things can get this time of the year.

Excuses, excuses, right?

This is exposition of the 'Oasis Lore.' Although this is an event in which Pomni and Ragatha tries to figure each other out, this is centered around Pomni's slow start to working her way into fitting into the Oasis. These two are having 'the talk,' as it's loosely mentioned by Jax in the story 'Anywhere the wind blows.'

Unfortunately, this is not really a ship-fic, but there are more of those coming in the future, though!

I don't think this one will do so well, but eh, I'll keep writing regardless...

I'm keen to bring in some more angst into this AU. Things are too happy in these works for my liking. I want to go into just how messed up Oasis can be, since it's a very unhealthy system they've got going on.

Warnings: Nothing too serious.

Little angst and very little fluff (like, a literal speck)

Frustration (For the characters involved, as well as you poor readers)

Unhealthy coping mechanisms

SUMMARY:

After Pomni had a strange encounter with Kinger, she was struck with the need to work about developing her status to something more positive among the other Circus members. She decides to start by approaching Ragatha, who ends up giving her the friendliest reality-check she could ask for. Pomni was in more trouble than she thought.

CHARTING THE LANDSCAPE

Pushing on.

That was what drove the jester this far.

That was the only thing that she was certain of. It didn’t matter that she didn’t see what the future held or what size and difficulty the obstacle was. It didn’t matter how impossible it seemed and it didn't matter how far she was forced to push herself.

She was a wreck, but she was just as stubborn.

The past few weeks have been tough. Her first day in the Digital Circus was apparently one of the worst that Kinger had ever witnessed for a newcomer to brave through. Her effort to push her mind through Caine’s demented joke of an exit – an unfinished, never-ending maze of a project (as his unfinished work usually was), was ‘admirable,’ as the chess piece called it.

He said she reminded him of his younger self.

Kinger glanced at Pomni to briefly meet her eyes, as if he was checking that she was still paying attention, before falling into a trans-like state. Disappointment tugged at her thoughts upon the realization that the most comforting moment that the little jester had had since she got damned to this digital plain, slipped away with the mere echo of the King’s words. When he suddenly jolted into animation again, she saw the sobriety reigned back and her heart lifted at the chess piece’s effort to force away the fog from his mind.

The fool witnessed the tug of war in Kinger's eyes; the clouded haze of nothingness as empty as death was straining to smother the powerful, but saddened twinkle of clarity. Despite the struggle, he spoke with ease – saying that the digital circus was not a fate to be faced by one alone, but instead, to be experienced by many in collaboration.

“You need to share you use.” He said, blinking rapidly as if looking through fog, “If you share, you are safe. If you are selfish, you will be left-”

Silence.

The king piece was frozen in place and his eyes fogged over. Whatever he was trying to say, died with the ember of hope that the girl had built up for his encouragement. He was gone.

Sudden hysterical laughter ripped the little’s fool’s thoughts from her head as she jumped in fright. After catching her breath, Pomni spotted Jax crawling on the floor as he wheezed with laughter, while she heard Ragatha’s bright voice chime in with near-manic cackles. She had half the mind to pursue the curiosity of knowing the context of their situation, but Kinger’s words haunted her mind.

Pomni was still starstruck by the white king’s clear, sober words. She didn’t think to interrupt him or break the apparent spell that was befell upon the one she first thought of, as the group’s loon. At the time, she was silent and eager to just listen to Kinger’s praise, but ever since she had some time to digest his words, they brought an icy sting of fear with their implication.

If she was like him, did that mean that they shared the same fate?

On that day, from then on, Kinger was the epitome of the loon she that grown to recognize, ever since she was casted into The Amazing Digital Circus. Despite her hopes of having another special moment with the King, she was only met with vague commentary and silly ramblings.

At least it was nothing she wasn’t familiar with.

'You need to share your use.'

Kinger said she had use… and that she needed to share it. Pomni didn’t know what use she had, but that wasn’t the part that she was concerned about. Sharing would imply that she had to have someone that would be willing to accept something from her. While Pomni wasn’t familiar with her new prison, she was far from stupid. Stubborn, yes, but not stupid.

She knew that she had no one.

The unfortunate aftermath of her first day and her decisions she made at the time, labelled her as a reckless, cowardly renegade. No loyalty. No sense of dignity.

Selfish.

Something Kinger warned her against.

Although it was never spoken aloud, Pomni was made aware that she was cast aside. She ran for an exit instead of helping a possible friend. She was ignored by Jax for a reason unknown to her. She was avoided by Zooble for making their partner uncomfortable. She was estranged by Gangle for being too eager – too interested – in the beauty that was the strange, sentient ribbon. She was abandoned by Kinger’s unreliable state of sanity.

She left Ragatha for dead.

And yet...

The ragdoll was Pomni’s only chance. If she was going to get her foot in the door, she was going to have to do everything in her power to get through to that doll. Ragatha was the only one who spared her a glance, aside from Kinger. She even stood aside the jester after she was abandoned by Pomni. It was a clear as day that Ragatha was either crazy, or too good for this world… and the fool was going to bet on the latter. It had to be the latter.

The doll was kind, sweet and reassuring. She constantly provided the little fool with a calm, cool image that Pomni couldn’t help but mirror; like the doll was a surface of a still pool in the dry earth. Ragatha acted like a human. Ragatha also looked mostly like a human. It was something the jester clung to on her first day – someone was still human in the digital world.

After the events of this previous day, she counted Kinger as a weird technicality.

Presently, Pomni was slowly creeping towards a lone, plush couch in the main area with a doll seated comfortably onto it. She was engrossed in the needle and thread piercing though the blue fabric that matched the colour of her dress. From what Pomni could tell, Ragatha was working on something smaller and finer than an article of clothing, but the jester didn’t bother to focus on it too much.

How was she going to start this conversation?

“Hi, it’s me again! You know, the girl who ditched you at the first sight of an amalgamation, came back to give you false hope, then ditched you again, when I saw the first thing resembling an exit. Wanna be friends?”

No, that wasn’t going to cut it.

Pomni didn’t have much to offer aside from her will to make this work, but if that was what she had, she would use it. She wouldn’t make it through another day alone – she wouldn’t! She wasn’t driven to insanity just yet; and be as it may – this digital realm would have to swallow her whole as she fought, thrashed, clawed, and screeched all the way down in her decent.

Pushing. On.

“Oh, hello Pomni!” Ragatha’s voice seeped through her mind from very close by.

That was sudden…

“Hey! Um- what are you making there?” Pomni stumbled through her words. She silently cursed herself for dissociating to the point where she forgot that she was approaching the doll with purpose.

“This?” Ragatha made a lack-luster attempt to gesture to the blue cloth on her lap, “I was just making a little dress for the ragdoll I made. I always find it so awkward to make these tiny clothes. There’s not much room to work with!”

The jester fixed her eyes on the sowing project, using it as an excuse to only glance in attempt to meet the doll’s eyes every now and again. She saw Ragatha scoot herself against one side of the couch before patting the space beside her in invitation for Pomni to take a seat. The ragdoll looked unbothered by her presence, but Pomni didn’t trust the performance.

Gangle wasn’t the only one in the Circus who wore a mask – the ribbon’s mask just happened to be physical.

“I saw you chatting with Kinger the other day.” The doll spoke again, nonchalantly, “Interesting choice in friends you have! But who am I to judge? I’d like to think I’m friends with everyone here, but between you and me, I’m pretty sure that we are all one minor inconvenience away from losing it. Power to Kinger for holding out for so long!”

The gentle easiness of Ragatha’s chatter, while undeniably comforting, felt… well… off – in a sense. It was senseless chatter, but hardly babbling, like small talk. Very well done and maintained by the Ragdoll, who was idly sowing the little dress skirt to the waist of the dress top.

But Pomni realized that that was just it.

The Ragdoll’s words felt like they were rehearsed… and Pomni was just part of a play that she wasn’t aware of. It wouldn’t make sense for Ragatha to be acting so unbothered and calm unless this was staged or practiced. While Pomni wanted to melt into the seemingly normal conversation that Ragatha was trying to coax her into, a deep, primal instinct was screaming for her to remain wary.

She wished for it to just quiet down for once.

“He’s quite the character.” Pomni said with a nervous cackle, to which the doll seemed to beam at. Taking it as a chance to keep the conversation alive, Pomni opted to find answers, “He was acting weird on that day.” That was too vague, Kinger always acted weird, “But like, weirder than normal. But not because he was weirder than normal – it was because he was acting normal.” What was she even saying…? “Well, I mean… normal for Kinger’s standard, which is weird because that is not normal. For him.” She wasn’t making sense! “I MEAN-”

“Whoa! Whoa, easy girl!” Ragatha flagged Pomni down with a easy chuckle, “I understand what you are saying, don’t worry.”

The jester felt the burn of desire to explain herself in the back of her throat, but obliged to the doll’s clear attempt to quiet her down. Instead, she reluctantly awaited Ragatha’s response.

“It sounds like you were describing one of his little ‘resets’ as we like to call them.” The doll explained, calmly and inviting as ever, “It’s like a moment of clarity that he gets occasionally. You’re lucky to have been there for it!”

Pomni decided to let her self-explanation die in her throat, even though she still felt the urge to do so. The doll’s description was good enough for Pomni to push on, “So he’s not completely insane?”

“What? No! None of us are – I think…” Ragatha reassured, while admittedly fading off into her own thoughts as she ended her sentence.

Pomni would think about those things later.

“So… what he told me wasn’t just crazy rambling, then?” she hesitantly asked, looking up to the doll with a fixed gaze for the first time since their encounter had started.

“Likely not!” Ragatha almost cheered, before glancing around and leaning closer to whisper to Pomni, “What exactly did he say?”

The jester paused, wondering what to do and what she could share. From how Ragatha was acting, the things Kinger shared during his ‘resets’ wasn’t something spoken about so casually. If Pomni had an advantaged by knowing something that no one else did, wouldn’t that mean that she had the upper hand in this scenario?

“Come on, Pomni!” Ragatha asked, leaning in even closer, now seeming eager as ever to hear what had the little fool so hesitant to speak, “What did he say?”

Kinger’s warning of selfishness rang in her mind again, causing the ideology of lying to appear less attractive than it was before, but stubbornly, the jester settled on a half-truth instead, “He just told me that I basically need friends.” She laughed in a bitter tone, “A bit of a slap in the face, but I guess he’s right in a sense.”

“Oh!” Ragatha, leaned back to resume her position as she huffed a little laugh, “Well, having friends is healthy! And lucky for you, we are not going anywhere, so you can take your time when warming up to us. No rush – we’ve all been where you are now.”

“That’s a bit hard to believe.” Pomni sighed, causing the doll to look at her in pity as she continued, “You all seem so… happy? No. Adjusted? Everyone is just doing their own thing and minding their own business like it’s nothing.”

“I wouldn’t say that we 'keep to ourselves' and 'mind our own business' as much as you think.” Ragatha spoke, taking the calm and cool, but hardly uninviting demeanor, “We are actually all up in each other’s business. We look out for each other…”

“You call Jax being the spawn of Satan to everyone around him, as him just ‘looking out for you?’ I don’t think that’s a ‘healthy’ relationship, Ragatha.”

“Oh, Jax shows that he cares in his own special little ways.” Ragatha dismissed too easily for Pomni’s liking, “It’s when he ignores you, that you should be worried. It usually means that he couldn’t care less – that he considers you… well… for a lack of a better way to say this; he maybe considers you… kind of… a bit of a, um, waste of his time…?”

Pomni allowed the poor attempt of the doll trying to soften the delivery of the news, to sink in. She reflected on the fact that Jax barely spared her a glance and even acted like she didn’t exist at times. As much as she despised the person that he chose to be towards his fellow Circus-members, it disturbed her just how much he was avoiding her, while he practically tormented the others. If his sick pranks, harmful jokes, and twisted taunting really was more than him just satiating some sadistic fantasy… and if what Ragatha said about him ignoring someone held any form of truth…

Then Ragatha’s words were a warning.

Ice clawed its way up Pomni’s spine. She wasn’t ready to consider that she was already a lost cause – deserted by everyone and only humored by the ragdoll out of common curtesy or pity. Logical reason cried out for the little fool to remember that Jax was still a bad person and that it may be a blessing not to be involved with someone as harmful as he was, but the fact that he looked right through her, while deliberately being a menace to everyone else, had the jester beginning to believe that there was a method to Jax’s madness after all.

The others had been trapped in the Digital Circus for years. Years. If he was really that bad of a person, would the others have made it this far? Clearly there was something that she was missing. Clearly there was something bigger than the bunny being a borderline sadist and the ragdoll being an unconditional saint.

If only she could figure out what it was.

“You drift into your own head a lot.” Ragatha commented with no real thought behind her words, “I can tell that by now. You go quiet when you start thinking. I suggest for you to be careful though – thinking too much is dangerous here.”

“Oh, uh, noted!” Pomni smiled sheepishly, “Thanks, I guess.”

“It’s nothing, maybe I spoke too soon, right?” the doll huffed brightly, “Maybe you are like Gangle… I swear that girl hosts entire conferences in her head. She might be the only one I know of, that’s able to do that without losing it. Trust me, I would know! I’ve been here long enough, second to Kinger, of course.”

Pomni struggled to keep up with the load of information that was being poured onto her.

Jax was a menace, but apparently there was a good reason for it, and he only acted that way with those he regarded. Pomni was being shunned by him, evident by the fact that he ignored her. Kinger was here the longest, followed by Ragatha. Pomni should refrain from thinking too much. Gangle was known for being the thinker or the group.

Her gut was screaming at her mind: everything said, was important – even if she didn’t know why.

But things needed to slow down.

“Gangle is the thinker, huh?” Pomni jumped in before Ragatha could speak again, “So that means she isn’t avoiding me too, right? At least there’s that-”

Ragatha cut her short, although it didn’t seem to be malicious, “What makes you think Gangle is avoiding you?”

“Oh! The other day, she came to talk to me… but things got weird – I made things weird.” Pomni nervously fidgeted as she briefly weighed her limited options to embarrass herself or leave the statement as it was.

She decided on the former, as embarrassment is a small price to pay for survival, “I think I came on too strong? We’re all human, but our bodies are not. She looks so weird, but strangely… I think she’s beautiful. I tried to tell her that, but she backed away very quickly. Her excuse was something about checking in on Zooble and Jax. She’s been walking wide circles to avoid me ever since…”

Pomni looked over to the doll with the intention of seeing just how much she made her cringe with second-hand embarrassment, but she was surprised to find something different.

Something unsettling.

Ragatha was staring ahead with an unfocused expression. Her face was struck with something akin to dread... and although she didn’t have a human body, she appeared as pale and a sheet. Pomni had half the mind to ask if the ragdoll had seen a ghost, but Ragatha’s slow movement to turn her head towards the jester, caused the words to die in her throat.

“Gangle and Zooble are romantically involved.” Ragatha said, any previous cheer from her voice vaporized to nothing but cut-throat, blunt indifference. From what the jester could tell, the doll was done playing coy and dancing around the elephant in the room.

No more games.

“I figured that one out after Jax’s comments about being grossed out by them making out in public.” Pomni shrugged, hoping to ease the atmosphere.

Ragatha refused to deflate, “He was making it clear for you to back off. You- y- you’re in a worse position than I thought, Pomni. No wonder Kinger took pity on you…”

“What do you mean? What are you saying?”

Ragatha finally tore her gaze away from Pomni with a huffed sigh, looking as stressed as she was on the day of Pomni’s arrival, “You need to get your foot in the door. If you don’t get you act together, it will only be a matter of time before they refuse to let me talk to you. Heaven knows how protective they can be at times-”

“Ragatha, I don’t know what you are trying to tell me. Who’re ‘they?’ Why do ‘they’ force you to do anything you don’t want to do?” Pomni asked as confused as she was becoming frantic.

“Pomni, listen. Focus. This is important, okay?” Ragatha turned her whole body to face Pomni, reaching out to rest her hands onto the little fool’s shoulders, only to pull away upon seeing a very familiar look of discomfort in anticipation to the doll’s touch – something she recognized in Jax.

That was something to unpack later.

“Pomni, you have Jax AND Gangle against you now. And you are well on your way to having Zooble reject you too. Do you understand that?”

Pomni nodded, hesitant, but silent.

“If it was just Jax, you could’ve had Gangle to get through to him, but now Gangle is avoiding you too, only leaving Zooble open – and that’s a very generous statement, considering that you were practically flirting with their partner.

“If you can get to Zooble, you’ll get to Gangle. Don’t worry about Jax for now, I’ll handle him. You need to win Zooble over. This is the only way you can win Gangle over. If Gangle shuns you, you are done for. Do you understand?”

Pomni’s head was spinning, but she got the gist of it down.

For some reason, it was important to be in Gangle’s good books. Apparently, the only way to do that, was to befriend the abomination she came to know as Zooble, Gangle’s partner. It made sense that someone would choose to get along with your partner’s friends rather than to resent them, but what didn’t make sense was why it was so important.

And what was that about being shunned?

“Listen, I get it – the ‘getting along with Zooble’ thing, but honestly, what does it matter? There’s people who doesn’t like me and that’s all there is to it, isn’t it?” Pomni desperately pried.

“Not here it’s not.” Ragatha shut her down, “Things are different around here… and here we all need each other. Especially when it comes to Gangle and the role she plays; the roles we all need to play to survive here. I can’t explain everything now, but please… do whatever you have to do to befriend Zooble. It’s the only chance you have for you to be accepted.”

“Fine, I’ll do it! Just calm down!” Pomni exclaimed as she was disturbed, “I don’t get it, but if this cult-thing will make things easier, then so be it. I’ll get Zooble to like me or whatever.”

Ragatha looked defeated as she flopped back to rest her back to the couch, “I know it hard to understand it now, but you will in time. Just focus on Zooble for now.”

“Ok! Ok! I got it, ok?”

Finally… silence…

There was a moment of silence for Pomni to digest the whole encounter. She didn’t understand what she was getting herself into, but she would just play along for the time being. It wasn’t until now that the jester realized how much she craved to have a normal conversation, an argument… hell, she craved to just be mad for a reason other than for things she couldn’t control.

While it was cathartic to engage in the encounter with Ragatha, she couldn’t help but feel hopeless and frustrated with her lack of understanding.

The doll’s voice was soft as it beckoned for Pomni’s attention yet again.

“About Zooble... They like fashion and abstract art. They also prefer to be alone most of the time, so try to catch them when they venture out to start a conversation with someone like me or Kinger. That way, you won’t be a bother.”

Pomni listened keenly as Ragatha continued to give her pointers, “Try to keep anything about you and your thoughts or feelings under wraps to maintain that factor of mystery. Believe it or not, everyone here is still very curious about you, even if they don’t show it – they are just trying to protect themselves from getting involved with someone who might cause them harm. Trust me, you are the talk of the town – use that. Not even Zooble is immune to gossip, as aloof and unbothered as they might seem.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” the jester affirmed.

Pomni slowly stood from her seat and stretched briefly, “Thank you. You actually… might have helped me a lot.”

“Honey, as it stands, you need all the help you can get.” Ragatha quipped without missing a beat. It earned a little chuckle from the fool.

“Yeah, you’re right. Thanks for the reminder.”

Pomni missed the little, tired smile that crept up the ragdoll’s face as she turned away. Pomni wanted to walk around outside. She wanted to clear her head and regain her strength before she braved an encounter with the Zolo-being. Just before Pomni could walk a few steps too far, she stopped in thought, turning around to face the doll once again.

“Hey Ragatha, why exactly are you helping me? Even after everything I put you through?”

“Don’t sweat it, New Stuff.” Ragatha scoffed with no real bite.

Pomni felt a real smile creep its way up her face for the first time since she was trapped in the Circus, “You really are too good for this place... you know that, right?”

Looking over to the doll once again, Pomni saw Ragatha’s face sporting an unreadable expression. It was almost as devoid of emotion and robotic as her voice was, when she spoke words with far too much weight for Pomni’s liking;

“I just do what I have to do.”

Oasis: TADC AU list

Masterlist

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female-eren · 5 months

Note

What is your opinion on jeankasa? I know its the butt of a lot of fandom jokes but personally I really like it and I think they make a lot of sense together - they both have dream of domestic life, raising a family, that kind of thing. I think they have a really interesting dynamic with a lot to explore. Again Jean is the butt of a tonne of fandom jokes lmao but he’s always been super respectful to Mikasa (Unlike Eren I love him sm but lets be fr) and I also love how he doesn’t hesitate to call her out on a couple different instances on s4 despite his crush, he’s really in tune with reality, like he’s so head over heels but also a potentially very grounding force for her

2/3 (same anon) Also your thoughts on AruAni? I loved it even in S1. I hate when people say it’s random because the seed was planted back then !!! Like it’s very subtle but like…. ofcourse it’s going to be like that given the kind of character Annie, especially, is. They definitely could’ve been handled better in S4, but I think that goes for pretty much everything in the latter half of S4, everything was a bit rushed and packed in all at once

3/3 Also I love all your takes on Aot and Fem!Eren!!! Which brings me to I genuinely hate when people joke about Eren being an incel and I hate how dudebros who be like “mee!!” to American Psycho and Joker and shit have adopted Eren. Like no… he’s for the girls. Eren is #1 woman respecter unironically…He was on the frontlines fighting for womens rights I was there I saw it

Hiii so sorry I've taken so long to answer this ask. Thank you!

I love making fun of Eren but the sigmachadbatemanjoker males don't understand and never will

Regarding jeankasa... I honestly don't like it. I agree with you that Jean is a good character and a good person, but I think that ship and especially it being more or less endgame (at least in the manga) comes from the classic case in a lot of male-authored stories, ie that because a male character is in love with a female character, obviously they end up together. His desire is the only necessary building block of the relationship, her purpose is to be desired and since he desires her, it's basically her duty to be with him.

Also this meme lol

I also think my unenthusiasm for any Mikasa ship (Eren x Mikasa, Jean x Mikasa etc) come from how poorly I think Mikasa herself was handled. Even if she was given somewhat more personality in the manga, she still had basically zero development. The half-assed last chapter and the shoehorned theme of "love" and Mikasa being the one to free Ymir the Founder didn't help. Mikasa as a person is in essence passive and stagnant. She hasn't ever had any goal besides "be close to Eren". I think that if she was given an arc of, for example, travelling to Hizuru and earning an education or accompanying Historia on negotiations with other world leaders would have expanded her character and given her something else to do. Exploring Mikasa's relationship with anyone other than Eren and Armin would've been interesting, even if I love the original trio. I would've really enjoyed seeing Mikasa use her strength and intelligence for something else, and develop interests and motivations separate from Eren. Had she done these things, I think both her relationship to Eren and Jean could've felt more... I don't know, like they had substance?

AruAni I do find cute in some ways, although I'm not really a shipper when it comes to AoT (goes for all ships in this series tbh). Especially in S1 I thought Armin and Annie had potential. I think Bertholdt's memories complicates the relationship, and the character assassination of Armin in S4 really sours the character and the ship for me. I also found the treatment of Annie strange. There's zero animosity in this group. The last time most of them encountered Annie she murdered dozens of people in really awful ways in front of them. She wrecked a city. Not even Connie seems to resent the Warriors at all, and while I found the pie-eating scene both funny and actually realistic (it's absurd, and due to the extremely complex emotions and experiences surrounding the scene, Connie's absurd reaction actually feels believable to me), I also think giving us JUST the pie scene isn't enough.

I also like Hitch and Annie. love this pic though

I think those are pretty much my thoughts rn. I hope to get more asks about aot :-)

#attack on titan

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ben-talks-art · 1 day

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You know what's a big shame about Star vs the forces of evil?

There were actually a lot of really good messages being talked about in this series, and it's unfortunate that nobody ever brings them up.

I know it's mostly been associated with how much of a letdown its finale and management of the constant shipping and switching was, but... There were a lot of other things that were really good and well-handled in this series

I like how in the season 1 finale Star loses half of her wand and needs to re-learn how to control her powers, in fact, every season basically ends with her losing something and having to learn how to deal with it.

She loses her magic, her mom, her home, her best friend, her throne... She's always dealing with the consequences of the challenges she faces and the choices she makes, and that's very important to note cause the entire premise of episode one is her needing to learn responsibility and about the weight her power holds.

I also like how Star seems to form actual friendships with her cast of characters. In many series the main lead will just bond with a character in one episode and then we will only see them again in the background until the finale when we need everyone to come together for some big epic battle or something... But here, she's constantly hanging out with Buff Frog, Janna, Tom, Eclipsa, her parents, and the members of the magic council.

And a lot of these friendships start off so weird that it makes you think they wouldn't work, but they somehow always do.

There also tons of episodes with some really good lines where characters throw some concepts that I don't see often in other series, even today.

Like there is one episode where they play some weird magic version of Truth or Dare and Star mentions how the things they say aren't really lies cause sometimes people just don't know how they feel. That's such a great line!

There is another where Star tells Tom she doesn't even know what teens her age do anymore cause she's been spending so much time just working on trying to fix her kingdom for the last two or three seasons.

It's actually crazy to hear that and realize how much this girl changed from episode 1 to who she becomes in season 4. Star from episode 1 would NEVER say a line like that.

One of my favorites though is at the finale of season 1 when Star's parents just exchange a worried look and go "I don't know if we're doing the right thing." once they let Star go after losing half her wand. It sets a nice tone of "Where are we going with this...?" that carries through the rest of the show.

The show also tries to subvert a lot of old tired tropes by throwing some very interesting ideas like making Star's love interests become actual friends early in the story, have the weird bird bad guy from season 1 go through a self-discovery journey where he has to start from scratch after losing everything, and while they do pair up Star and Marco in the end in a very underwhelming way, I like how both of them go through their own series of love interests before arriving there.

It wasn't just "Oh, he/she is the one!" They actually try out things with other people before realizing what they really want.

And a lot of the plot twists are legit fascinating.

The story behind Meteora is my favorite part of the entire show. Again, they take this joke villain from season 1 and turn it into this massive conspiracy where the people in charge strip a mother from her child in order to keep the power in the hands of those they want.

I don't even know what might go through a kid's head while watching this.

There also lots of other cool twists like Toffe's plan to end magic, the identity of Eclipsa's husband, the meaning behind Star's butterfly form and how they handle it by just allowing it to run free and observe where it goes.

I don't know, this show just had a ton of fun ideas, and they handled them, most of the time, in fun ways.

A lot of other times they were handled in super clunky ways, yes, and sometimes the build-up to certain events could be way too slow, the shipping teasing got annoying after a while, and some resolutions were a tad anti-climatic...

There definitely are a lot of problems in Star vs. Foe, but at times it feels like when people talk about it, they treat it like there's nothing good, like they wish this never existed, like the Marco and Star endgame is the only thing worth talking about and... no there are tons of things worth talking about in here.

It had low lows, but also some really good highs, and I'm glad I saw it and glad it existed.

#star vs the forces of evil #star vs foe #disney shows #disney animation

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reflections-in-a-critical-eye · 24 days

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Both sets of shippers in the BTS fandom are so damn annoying to me

Me: here's the factual reasons everything you said is wrong. Here's the correct version of the mistranslation you're using. This is the setting of the joke you've taken out of context. This is them doing the exact same thing with their other friends. That's not even them in the picture you're spreading. Your friends husbands co-workers Korean dad is incorrect about what he said - it's simply not true. You're citing this thing as fact but only one fan saw it and you're still using a wild amount of guesswork to reach your conclusion

Tkkr: Their love is so deep that others are jealous. Anyway let's celebrate their wedding anniversary tomorrow

Me: Yeah I think they have different jobs now. It's not a big deal. They're still together

Jkkr: Do you think they broke up!!!!!!

Me: well technically we don't know if they were ever together but I don't think this is a reason to think...

Jkkr (hysterical): Everything was a lie! Love is dead! I knew it! I knew it! No wonder they did zero dance challenges together (the ultimate sign of love)! They've been oscar worthy method actors this whole time! I knew seven was autobiographical! They are straight white men after all (not Jimin)! I've fallen and I can't get up!

You'd have to read like half of this post that I made last year, but once you get past that, you'll find some of my thoughts on this issue and what is my stance on this particular type of positioning in the fandom.

From a critical perspective, you're not bringing anything new and it's a dead end conversation from the beginning because of your premise. One is not like the other and never has been, but somehow this is a discourse perpetuated by large subsections of the fandom. Conversation on shipping practices and shipper fan behavior could be productive and interesting, if only we would at least try to minimize our own bias for the sake of it. Not completely because it's impossible, but we could try. And it's also a conversation that cannot take place if we don't know or refuse/forget to have a somehow cohesive image of each shipper group, with its characteristics and other relevant aspects.

I never went out of my way to correct people here and there because I don't feel the need to, but also because I understand when there's a possibility for understanding and conversation and where there's not. Again, that comes as a result of the knowledge we would have about shipping group dynamics and characteristics.

And lastly, it's K-Pop shipping, not rocket science. It can be taken seriously from a research/fandom studies perspective, but using it as ladder for us to get up on our high horse? Not for me.

#m thoughts #bts ships #bts shippers #jikook

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eldritch-spouse · 2 years

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Which of you dummies would join a book club ?

Santi would join one that talks about erotic books, he'd read the back of the book to get an idea of the book. He doesn't actually read it. He just let's the dorky humans get themselves riled up discussing the book. He just sitting their planning on how he gonna rail all the little dorks and nerds. When they ask him about the book he describes sensual secen that vaguely resemble the book . Its not right but no one is calling him out due to being highly flustered

I can see Nebul joining one and actually does get into discussion because he actually reads the books. If the book club discusses a book with a master in it. He gets really into and imagines himself as the master of all the little humans in the group. It gets quite because Nebul got little into it and he just plays it off as joking. The group is a little quiet after that.

I could see Patches join one. IF THAT LOSER GOT OUT THE CELERGY MORE AND LET HIMSELF HAVE FUN. He just so happened to join one with a cute human in it.(he actually been stalking them for a month now.) He just so happens to start talking to the cute human and becoming their book buddies really fast because they have so much in common.

Maybe Obie if his crush is in one and their always food their.

I'm not to sure about the rest. But I thought of funny Scenario with Admin. It's silly canon. Never to happen in canon.

Admin in a club meeting discussing the romance of the two main characters.

Admin isn't agreeing with person in the group about a ship. But it's still pretty civil discussion . Krulu appears out now where.

Krulu: Actually your both wrong, clearly Kevin the leader is the better choice for the protagonist. He clearly the superior lesser. 🙄💅

Half of the group dies from shock, the ones that are alive are traumatized crying on the floor or are so shocked they can't move.

Krulu: Oh no, how sad the meeting must be over since everyone is seems to be so occupied at the moment. It's such a shame. 😔 let's go lamb.

Book clubs, huh?

Oh yeah, Santi only reads if it's something made by an author from the lust ring. And even then, his attention span can leave a lot to be desired if it isn't like, the raunchiest thing to ever be written. He brings volumes of filthy eroticas to every meeting, especially anything to do with incubi, so that he can then read nasty passages aloud and interrupt with:

" This is true, we can cum several times. " (Casts lidded glances at everyone.) " The vast majority of us also have slits, as you can see. " (Spreads legs.)

Or:

" Not everyone reacts the same to our saliva and the author explained this perfectly! Does anyone want to volunteer? I only want you guys to have the most immersive experience, of course. "

He will not rest until an orgy is achieved.

Nebul is usually one to stick to more philosophical books or anything related to astrology, even astronomy or psychology. He won't shy from an erotic romance once or twice however. Though he's likely to go on long-winded spiels about how most of these romances portray a flawed or lackluster interpretation of power imbalances in kink. Or how they're nothing compared to the true symbiosis of master and pet dynamics.

The wraith will likely sit next to the most timid or soft-spoken people and get off by exerting pressure on them. They're silently influenced to agree with him and get subtle praise when they do so, he's already working his magic without them even knowing. Any more dominant-presenting people will be challenged into backing down constantly. He wants to be in charge of the club.

Let's face it, Obie is more likely to eat the books when no one's looking than actually read them. Uhh... What chapter are we on again?

Patches knows every book you like and he's read them all before you. Do you want recommendations? Because the dullahan has at least twenty possible titles you'd probably love. Oh no no, you don't have to buy them! He'll let you borrow his copies, it's the least he can do for someone as cultured as you! Besides, the two of you seem to have similar tastes, how about you ditch this club and he can take you two somewhere calmer to read together?

Whenever you read any book, Krulu is also technically reading it, even if indirectly. He's probably complaining that you take much longer to read than him, which drives the higher nuts. If you do go to any book club, I assure you Krulu's going to be scrutinizing everyone in the back of your mind, and he will force you to criticize mediocre writing in the most possible insulting manner towards the people who enjoy reading it. Human literature bores him to the core, it's a complete snoozefest for Krulu. They'll get bored enough to fuck around with the surroundings, making walls deform or objects move on their own, touching people without them seeing his hands. Anything to speed this shit up.

Agner would love a book club, he's the only one that's normal about it.

#Santi oc #Patches oc #Obie oc #Nebul oc #Krulu oc #tiredidot

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ofstoriesandstardust · 5 months

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she'll be the best you ever had if you let her (n.p.t.)

note: i'm not sure i totally LOVE this idea but @cottagecori is my resident enabler so you're getting 2k words of something i may or may not continue

cw: quote unquote affairs, swearing, bisexual reader, this won't be everyone's cup of tea and that's okay! it's not for you!, is this poetic genius or have i just been listening to too much phoebe bridgers

“and i can wish all that I want but it won’t bring us together”

December 2021

Your hand shakes as you move to wipe away the tear that began to fall down your face. Sam’s hand finds yours, squeezing.

“I’m sorry.” You hear your best friend whisper. “You didn’t deserve this. I’m sorry.”

May 2021

Meeting Natasha had been like coming home after a long day, warm and safe.

She’d been kind, chatting with you as there was a delay in the program, her nimble fingers brushing yours as she takes a booklet from you.

You’ll blame the redness of your cheeks on the beaming sun atop the retired Naval aircraft carrier before you’d ever admit such a short interaction had left you feeling so much.

And you know, in your soul, that you don’t typically enjoy nights out. Not in packed, crowded bars, certainly not surrounded by drunken military men.

But this part of your life is supposed to be different and it will never be different if you don’t make decisions you normally wouldn’t.

So with a twinkle in Sofia’s eye and a warm smile on her face, you link your arm with her and follow her off the looming ship on the shores of La Jolla.

Falling in love with Natasha is simple.

It’s easy, like falling asleep.

She’s as kind as she is strong-willed, a duality that shouldn’t exist together but does.

You can see, even from easy conversation, how much she cares about this team that she’s stationed with, how much they’re family to her.

(You’d worked with middle schoolers in your freshman year of college and they all thought you were 14. You knew.)

But Natasha isn’t him. She’s kind, and warm, and light. She listens to you on your good days and your bad days, makes you coffee on late nights as you slouch over books and an open Google doc, and brings you groceries when she knows you’ll be too busy to remember to do it yourself.

In short, Natasha loves you. To her, it’s simple and honestly, how could you not love her in return?

Natasha knows you and loves you. She loves you because she knows you.

Which is why it feels like a dagger cut so deep when Natasha admits to you that she knew.

November 2017

His fingers tremble with rage as he sets the paper down, barely breathing as he struggles to meet his partner’s eye.

“How long?” He whispers.

“Tom-”

“How. long.” He grits out.

Pete sighs. “Since August.”

“Three months.” He whispers. “Three months and you hid this from me the whole time?”

“You were sick Tom, I needed you to get better. You never would if you had known. And- And I hardly know anything as it is-”

“You know enough.” He spits out, eyes unable to look at just one piece of information on the papers scattered out in front of him. “And this girl? What do you plan to do?”

Pete sighs again. “She’s my daughter, Tom. I have to know her. I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t.” He whispers, a fact that is making bile rise in his still-healing throat.

“No.” He says with a quick shake of his head. “No. If you want to stay married to me, she stays out of our life.”

July 2021

“Okay, thoughts?” You say, stepping out into the living room.

“You look pretty!” Fran exclaims as Sam nods his head in agreement.

“But we’ve said that about all of them.”

You heave a sigh, flattening out the skirt of the dress. “I know but-”

“No buts. You look incredibly pretty and Nat is going to like you just as much as she did yesterday.” Sam says firmly.

You sigh again, glancing at him. “I wish you guys were coming with me.” You admit quietly before plopping down on the couch next to Fran.

Fran leans over to straighten the straps of the dress, as she offers you a knowing smile. “You’re gonna have a good time. Sam and I can entertain ourselves for an evening, you know.”

“I did live here for a while, remember!” Sam shouts from the kitchen.

When had he gone into the kitchen?

“You didn’t have to.” You whisper, taking the bunches of sunflowers from her.

“Let me take these from you.” Fran offers, before extending her other hand to Natasha. “You must be Natasha. I’m Fran. Sam’s in the kitchen. Babe, do you have a vase?”

Nat’s right hand finds your thigh, drawing circles into your skin with ehr thumb as she pulls out of your driveway.

“So remind me how you know Sam and Fran?”

“Sam and I had a mutual friend and ended up really hitting it off. They’re just visiting for the weekend. I’m actually staying in his family’s place right now.”